AI and VR driven devices need to be embraced to bridge healthcare gap: Survey- Technology News, Firstpost

India is facing an acute shortage of skilled healthcare professionals and hospital beds, and the situation can change if doctors embrace Artificial Intelligence (AI)-driven devices and wearables/apps at hospitals, a new report said on 10 July. There are 29 skilled healthcare professionals for 10,000 people -- way below the global average of 109 and the lowest score across all 16 countries surveyed, according to the first edition of India's Future Health Index (FHI) by Royal Philips, a global leader in healthcare technology. People walk past the Philips headquarters in Barueri, Brazil. Another barrier is the low number of hospital beds 7 per 10,000 in India in comparison to 38 per 10,000 on average globally, the findings showed. "While top hospitals and clinics in metro cities may boast of having cutting-edge technologies, semi-urban and rural areas are yet to fully leverage the potential of digital healthcare," the survey noted.